Battle of Lepanto: Ottoman and European Navies Face Off in the Mediterranean

Beginning:

October 7, 1571; The scent of impending excitement wafts through the balmy Mediterranean air. Müezzinzade Ali Pasha, commander of the Ottoman Navy, is observing the movement of enemy forces from his ship. The opponent Don Juan of Austria has already organized his forces, the battle will begin soon. The roar of the cannons and the cries of the wounded are waiting to be heard. No one knew it at the time, but Lepanto would be the last major battle between standing ships in naval history.

As soon as Ali Pasha gave a signal, all the stands fell into the water, flags were raised and rows of ships headed towards the enemy. A confident Ottoman navy, the Mediterranean has become a veritable 'Ottoman lake' since the Europeans were crushed at Preveza in 1538 by Khairuddin Barbarossa. The Europeans failed to win any major naval battles. History will be repeated today?

Background

The 16th century can be called the golden age of the Ottoman Empire. All the European powers tremble at their glory on land and water. Sultan Selim II follows in the footsteps of his father Suleiman the Magnificent and is busy expanding his empire. His target is the island of Cyprus under the rule of Venice. In 1570, he commanded about four hundred ships with more than a hundred thousand men, and the fourth Ottoman-Venetian war began.

Fourth Ottoman-Venetian War begins over Cyprus; Image Source: mappr.co

A cornered Venice appealed to Pope Pius V for military aid. For five years he had been trying to form a Roman Catholic alliance against the Turks, but the discord between the various states of Europe prevented him from succeeding. So, this time he reached a dead end.

The Holy League

Pius' alliance with the Catholic superpower and Habsburg-ruled Spain. There is tension between them and Venice over the possession of Italy, so much wood has to be burned to bring the two sides to a point. Eventually the alliance included the Pope's own forces along with the Knights of Venice, Spain, Genoa, the Duchies of Savoy and Urbino, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, and the Order of St. John of Malta. The Holy League was formed. King Philip of Spain's half-brother Don John of Austria (John of Austria) is the Commander-in-Chief.

Statue of Don John in Messina, Italy; Image Source: encirclephotos.com

While the pope is scrambling to form a league, Selim's troops destroy several Venetian fortresses, including the capital Nicosia. Famagusta, the last Venetian stronghold in Cyprus, was under siege from 15 September 1570. It fell almost a year later in August, by which time the Ottoman navy had entered the Adriatic.

Judgment of power

The ships of the Holy League assembled at Messina in Sicily. Here they had to wait for the Spanish fleet until August 24, 1571. On the 16th of September the combined fleet sailed for the island of Corfu. By the time news of the defeat at Famagusta arrived, the Turkish fleet under the command of Ali Pasha was anchored in the Gulf of Patraikos, near Lepanto (present-day Návpaktos) in Greece.

Don John had a total of 211 galley ships, including 6 large galleys. He had about seventy thousand men including sailors and soldiers, and about two thousand guns. About 255 galleys under the control of Ali Pasha, of which 45 are small galleys or galliots. There are about 80,000 men but only 750 cannons. The discipline of the Ottoman navy was not as strict as that of the Europeans.

The galley; Image Source: sketchfab.com

Tactics

Ali Pasha's plan was to build a strong defense force of 95 ships himself. The galleys on both arms will take the offensive role. Sixty-seventy ships will be kept as a reserve force.

Don John is aware of the number of his cannons. He wants to crush Ali Pasha's array with heavy galleys and other ships. A sufficient number of ships will be placed on either side to prevent the attack of the enemy, with 30 galleys as a reserve force behind her and four by eight on either side.

Fight

In October, Don John got ready for battle. On the 7th the two armies met. The Holy League advanced in four squadrons. In Don Juan, Venetian commander Barbarigo (Agostino Barbarigo) on left, Spanish admiral Giovanni Andrea Doria on right, and his comrade Álvaro de Bazán (marqués de Santa Cruz) in reserve.

At first, Ali Pasha arranged his fleet in a crescent shape, but after understanding John's tactics, he arranged himself in the same way. He remained to face the League's commander-in-chief, giving way to Mohammed Saulak, governor of Alexandria. Pasha of Algiers, Ulukh Ali went left.

Barbarigo and Chaulak were the first to fire. The League's left wing was crippled by the Ottoman ships, Barbarigo and his assistant Contarini were killed. Bajan became active when the situation worsened, and the battle turned when additional ships he sent joined the fray. The Turkish fleet was caught between arrows and enemy ships, and Shoulak was killed. Ali Pasha's right flank was shattered for lack of a leader, and the surviving Ottoman soldiers fled with several ships ashore.

The Battle of Lepanto began; Image Source: dailysabah.com

Meanwhile, in the middle, John and Ali Pasha engage in mortal combat. They continue to try to attack each other in momentary fire. Ali Pasha directly collided with his flagship Sultana in Don Juan Real. Clashes are going on on the decks of the two stranded ships. The battlefield around them turned into hell.

Ali Pasha's ship hit John's ship directly; Image Source: historyextra.com

Again Bajan intervened, his spare ships sent to strengthen John's hand. But still Ali Pasha's fleet was fighting for its life. But their bravery was shattered when the Ottoman commander was killed. Sultana was captured and dragged away by John. Then the middle part of the Ottoman fleet collapsed.

The situation on the right side of the Holy League is completely opposite. Ulukh Ali overcomes Doria with stored energy. Doria moved out to sea to fight him even, creating a gap between Juan's frozen hull. The Ottoman general is going to take the opportunity to get angry, if he succeeds, the margin of victory will fall in favor of the Ottomans. Ali's ship quickly approached, the sundered European galleys becoming its prey. This time he aimed at Juan's midsection.

But the fleet of Maltese knights kept him alive. Bajan himself came forward to help them. After much loss of blood, the Pasha of Algiers retreated, taking his fleet to safety. Casualties on both sides were around 8,000. But the Holy League won. They captured about a hundred galleys of the Turks and destroyed another 50. Their loss was only 12 galleys.

Effect

Lepanto was the first major European victory against the Ottoman navy. Naturally the Pope and the Catholic Monarchs propagated it as a great victory. However, this victory was not of much military importance, as the Holy League failed to reap its benefits. If they had continued to advance after Lepanto, it would have been possible to weaken the Ottoman naval force to the last, but due to their quarrels, they stopped fighting. Because of that, the Ottoman Empire continued.

Sultan Selim and his chief vizier Mehmed Pasha (Sokollu Mehmed Pasha) refused to take Lepanto's defeat seriously. Later, the occupation of Cyprus by Ottoman forces proved their point. "The defeat of Lepanto is like shaving our beard," said Mehmed Pasha to the Venetian ambassador, "but by taking Cyprus we cut off one of your arms." The beard will grow back, but the arms will not be made new.”

Chief Vizier Mehmed Pasha; Image Source: turkisharchaeonews.net

Mehmed Pasha's words proved true, the Turks rebuilt the navy within just six months of the defeat. They launched about 250 new ships, eight of which were the largest ships ever seen in the Mediterranean.

Later Turkish historians, however, gave importance to the Battle of Lepanto as the first major defeat of the Ottoman navy. Through this, European domination was established in the western part of the Mediterranean Sea. Moreover, Lepantoi instilled in them the confidence that it was possible to defeat the Turks. As a result, the Ottoman advance, although not halted, was somewhat weakened, and their opponents gradually strengthened.